Business / Philosophy of PhotographyTaking pics is one thing, but understanding why we take them, what they mean, what they are best used for, how they effect our reality -- all of these and more are important issues of the Philosophy of Photography. One of the best authors on the subject is Susan Sontag in her book "On Photography."

lousy photography, she's not that good- -- i thought this had been hashed to death with the huff post and petapixel articles- --- she dresses strangely, stands in the way of traffic flow and makes a scene, has a camera rigged on a tripod, well, no duh... people stare...

I'm not so sure how new this story is but I give her credit for doing something different. It definitely has that "something extra" missing from the vast majority of lifeless street photos and isn't a subject that has been beat to death. Sure her tactics may be unorthodox but so are those others like Bruce Gilden.

lousy photography, she's not that good- -- i thought this had been hashed to death with the huff post and petapixel articles- --- she dresses strangely, stands in the way of traffic flow and makes a scene, has a camera rigged on a tripod, well, no duh... people stare...

blah.meh.underwhelmed.

It's not photography per se .

Let a prettier face and a nicer body 'obstruct traffic' and you would never see the contempt recorded in these images. I think that's the point here .

lousy photography, she's not that good- -- i thought this had been hashed to death with the huff post and petapixel articles- --- she dresses strangely, stands in the way of traffic flow and makes a scene, has a camera rigged on a tripod, well, no duh... people stare...

blah.meh.underwhelmed.

+1 from a purely photographic standpoint these are really bland and unintresting

I don't think she has shamed these people at all. I think that most of them would not be embarrassed at them selves if they saw these photos. I think that many non fat people think that fat people eat too much and should be ashamed of them selves.( for the record, I am getting fatter as I get older and It sucks .) I don't think there is a lot of sympathy for fat people. Compare this to the young people that take selfies with homeless people as a back drop, these people have been outed and shamed.

no, it is interesting - forget the 'perceived' quality of the photography.
Go look at the cop photo...you want this cop to take YOUR complaint seriously?
I always find folk of a 'certain type' react quite as predicted when the truth of their 'culture' is in their face.

I don't believe she is sloppy at all. Her style fits what she is trying to say. She is taking a hard look at herself and others, as they look at her. Societal standards are what she is mocking. There is a tremendous outcry in the media by those who get "photoshopped" to appear "perfect". They want to be left as is. As a society, we have gone too far.

I put her name in Google Images and got many more photos. Some are mocking her but most are just looking at her. The cops photo is the one good image she has.
I see nothing wrong with looking at people who look different. It's a natural reaction. As long as it is just a glance and not staring.
It is an interesting project, more about sociology than photography, though of course the two are linked.

I'm not inclined to cut her any slack on this. I used to weigh 224lb, which is a lot when you're 66 inches tall. For many years now, I've weighed under 145lb. All it takes is a weighing machine, a notebook and will power.

I disliked the message of her writing and feel that the photographs failed to illustrate anything much. This woman, is part of the problem, not trying to be part of the solution.

Apart from that, al ist gut, ja?

You have balls to say that. These were my thoughts also but I really didn't feel like voicing them here. I've been down the same path and did exactly what you suggested. Dropped from a 250 pound depressed wreck to 170lb with just diet and exercise. Unless you have a serious health problem that precludes you from exercise all it takes is selfcontrol and patience. I think shes shaming herself more than shaming others

You have balls to say that. These were my thoughts also but I really didn't feel like voicing them here. I've been down the same path and did exactly what you suggested. Dropped from a 250 pound depressed wreck to 170lb with just diet and exercise. Unless you have a serious health problem that precludes you from exercise all it takes is selfcontrol and patience. I think shes shaming herself more than shaming others

Didn't read the article did you? She DOES have a serious health problem. She's tried what you recommended. It didn't work for
her. For some reason she's sick of people making judgements based purely on her appearance. As for shaming, I think she's just trying to document.

I'm not saying I think there is an ounce of visual interest in the photos. To me they are simply snapshots. I think she has misunderstood the aesthetic foundation of HCB's "decisive moment."

But about the judgement meted out on the overweight I think no further proof is required than this thread.

Still, much more interesting photographic subject than cats and as a project potentially quite powerful. And as a fleeting moment, even if not "decisive", photography is an appropriate medium.

Didn't read the article did you? She DOES have a serious health problem. She's tried what you recommended. It didn't work for
her. For some reason she's sick of people making judgements based purely on her appearance. As for shaming, I think she's just trying to document.

I'm not saying I think there is an ounce of visual interest in the photos. To me they are simply snapshots. I think she has misunderstood the aesthetic foundation of HCB's "decisive moment."

But about the judgement meted out on the overweight I think no further proof is required than this thread.

Still, much more interesting photographic subject than cats and as a project potentially quite powerful. And as a fleeting moment, even if not "decisive", photography is an appropriate medium.

Apparently your the guy who can't read. I said precludes her from exercise. Hypothyroidism does not preclude someone from exercise. I'am not saying I know her medical history but that's almost a laughable excuse shes giving.

I thought it was an interesting read, her photos less so but they do show the way people judge over weight people.

I think most people look at her in disgust, and even in this thread people seem to think this 'fatty' just needs to exercise and eat less-in fact they offer her that advice.
The problem being this woman has a serious medical problem called hypothyroidism where the thyroid gland is underactive-my mother suffers from the same illness you have no control over your weight and need to take a chemical called Thyroxine™ everyday to stay alive.

I think some of the people here should try to understand that, in fact they mirror the ugliness show to the woman in the story-possibly she has a much bigger point?

I wonder if people who see people with other serious medical conditions that cause them to look 'abnormal' offer similar advice-tolerence and understanding I bet she gets so little!

I'd like to think she's holding a mirror to society, but I'm little skeptical. It's not uncommon to capture goofy expressions on people's faces if they are not aware they are being photographed. I wonder if all the gazes were as mean-spirited as the freeze frames suggest. Also, that shot of NY finest seems a little hard to believe, would the cop be really so dumb to ridicule a bystander in public, under the eyes of hundreds of people on the street? If true, shame on him, if contrived, shame on her.

Didn't read the article did you? She DOES have a serious health problem. She's tried what you recommended. It didn't work for
her. For some reason she's sick of people making judgements based purely on her appearance. As for shaming, I think she's just trying to document.

I'm not saying I think there is an ounce of visual interest in the photos. To me they are simply snapshots. I think she has misunderstood the aesthetic foundation of HCB's "decisive moment."

But about the judgement meted out on the overweight I think no further proof is required than this thread.

Still, much more interesting photographic subject than cats and as a project potentially quite powerful. And as a fleeting moment, even if not "decisive", photography is an appropriate medium.

My Mother has been taking thyroxine as a medication for the last twenty odd years ... if Ms Morris-Cafiero thyroid is underproductive there is a simple treatment. Oh, and if her thyroxine levels actually were low she would be at home asleep not wandering around taking candid photos

The few photographs in the article except for the last one illustrate her point very well imo. The photographs do not only look like snapshots they are snapshots but honestly why not what's so bad about snapshots.
If she were extremely underweight or had a big mole on her nose and head she would get the same reactions. People like to sneer at or make fun of people that are less than perfect. Sad truth.

If I were her I would not only use her not even extremely overweight body but also people with other problems say a heavy case of neurodermitis or something like that to illustrate the problem. It's not great art but the photographs work.

I also don't think that her weight should matter in the discourse about the work, it's irrelevant. The only thing that matters is the people's reaction to people that are not the norm or do not conform to the beauty ideal.

It's entirely possible to control your weight enjoyably. As an example, did you know that many types of ice cream provide less than 150 kilocalories per 100 grammes? Compare that with typical values of 230 kilocalories per 100 grammes for wholemeal bread.

Good for you pat yourself on the back, what would your advice be for the lady in the OP who has a serious illness that makes her put on weight?

My mother has that illness, she'll be ecstatic to learn that simple exercise and calorie controlled diet will help against the terrible illness that is hypothyroidism.

Apparently your the guy who can't read. I said precludes her from exercise. Hypothyroidism does not preclude someone from exercise. I'am not saying I know her medical history but that's almost a laughable excuse shes giving.

Hypothyroidism pretty much precludes someone from exercise, it can make sufferers fatigued, short of breath with swelling of the tendons, abnormal heart rhythms, weight gain etc

So some may find somebody that suffers from that terrible illness having 'a laughable excuse' I'm not sure serious illness is an excuse, but it should once you are aware her problem at least instil some empathic response from readers-as many as 1 in 20 people have this I know two-its not nice.

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